The present invention relates to a safety for a shotgun. More particularly, the present invention relates to an improved safety for use with a shotgun having a scope.
Safety mechanisms are used to enable or to disable the firing mechanism of a firing arm. This allows the user to disable the firearm when it is not in use to prevent unintentional firing. Prior art safety mechanisms designed for shotguns have included a switch which moves longitudinally with respect to the length of the barrel. Such prior art systems for shotguns, however, are not configured to accommodate a scope.
Shotguns are primarily used for applications such as hunting fowl which do not require the use of scopes. Shotguns are designed, however, to accommodate the firing of "slugs" for hunting larger animals, such as deer. The use of shotguns firing "slugs" is preferred over rifles when hunting animals in populated areas because "slugs" have a shorter trajectory or range than bullets fired from a rifle. These "slug" applications benefit from the use of scopes because they reduce the possibility of striking unintended targets.
The placement of a scope when mounted on a shotgun interferes with easy interaction with the safety switch. Typically the safety switch and scope are both located on top of the shotgun such that the safety switch is positioned directly beneath the scope where the scope is secured to the top of the body of the shotgun. Shotguns are typically designed such that when the index finger engages the trigger, the thumb of the same hand can easily reach and slidably engage the safety switch. The scope is mounted with a slight offset above the body of the shotgun but the typically close proximity of the scope to the body is too small to allow easy engagement of the safety switch with the thumb. The use of gloves in reduced temperature environments introduces additional problems. The typically small profile of prior art safety switches restricts the ease of access when the scope is in place. This restriction results in additional difficulty in positively engaging or disengaging the safety switch which can effect safety and convenience of use.
The safety mechanism in U.S. Pat. No. 2,648,926 to Ackerson is for use with a bolt action rifle. Here, the safety switch swings in a horizontal, rather than vertical plane, beneath a scope mounted above the bolt sleeve and caulking piece. This allows the rear end of the scope to be disposed to the eye of the marksman and mounted at a relatively low level without the scope impairing the operation of the safety switch.
The safety mechanism shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,484,977 to Wilcox is for rifles with bolt actions and discloses a safety switch rotatable in a horizontal plane rather than a vertical plane. This configuration also allows the rifle to accommodate a scope.
The safety mechanism shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,790,261 to Wood shows a safety switch which is rotatable in a vertical plane generally about the longitudinal axis of the barrel. None of these prior art safety switches are adapted for use with conventional shot gun safety mechanisms.